The move is an attempt to "send a clear signal both to the American people and the Department of Justice" that lawmakers expect to see the full account of Mueller's work, according to the House Judiciary Committee's chairman, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y.

Excluding themselves from the bipartisan House consensus were four members, who instead chose to vote present: libertarians Rep. Justin Amash (Ky.) and Rep. Thomas Massie (Mich.), and President Donald Trump Republican loyalists Rep. Matt Gaetz (Fla.) and Paul Gosar (Ariz.). In making an argument for transparency, Republican leaders have pointed to Barr's comments and the existing regulations, without explicitly pressing for the underlying evidence. Those regulations require only that the report explain the decisions to pursue or to decline prosecutions, which could be as simple as a bullet point list or as fulsome as a report running hundreds of pages.

"I want the whole truth and nothing but the truth: what Putin did to the electoral process, the failures of the Obama administration to reacting to this attack in real time", Hurd said. Bringing a vote on the resolution also served as a way for Democrats to put Republicans on record on the issue.

Democrats speculate that the report might have enough evidence to support an impeachment effort against the president.

Democrats are anxious that Barr's strict defense of his own prerogative, combined with his stated respect for Justice Department rules advising against both the indictment of a sitting president or impugning an unindicted individual in an investigative report, means potential information implicating President Donald Trump in alleged wrongdoing could be buried.

At least one Republican is siding with Democrats.

Once the investigation concludes, Mueller will submit a written report to Barr, who will then need to brief Congress.

Manafort has been sentenced to about 7 1/2 years in federal prison after he was convicted in two cases that came out of the Mueller investigation, and shortly after he learned his fate the Manhattan district attorney indicted him on 16 pardon-proof counts related to real estate fraud. He was rebuffed when the Senate judiciary committee chairman, Lindsey Graham, objected.